Rack construction for diswashing machine



March 24, 1964 RACK CONSTRUCTION FOR DISWASHING MACHINE Filed Nov. 21,1961 FIG-3 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 25 2 $21 (Pa n"? 4 flu-h k L I 45 T {A I Kas f 3? 42 42 INV EN TORS RUSSELL C; GEIGER 8:

BY CHARLES M.ALLEN ATTOR N EYS United States Patent 3,126,098 RACKCONSTRUCTIGN FOR DEHWASHING MACHINE Russell C. Geiger and Charles M.Allen, both of Troy,

Ohio, assignors to The Hobart Manufacturing Company, Troy, @hio, acorporation of Ohio Filed Nov. 21, 1961, Ser. No. 153,868 2 Claims. (Cl.21141) This invention relates to an improved rack construction fordishwashing machines, particularly domestic dishwashing machines whichare required to cleanse a relatively wide variety of items, ranging fromsilver and the various pieces of place settings to relatively large potsand pans.

The cabinet dimensions of domestic dishwashing machines are, at thepresent time, standardized, and thus most manufacturers supply machineswhich occupy essentially the same space, as to height, width and depth.Excepting the fact that different manufacturers employ different typesof liquid spraying apparatus and recirculating devices, it can begenerally stated that the volume of the actual cleansing chamber inthese machines is substantially the same, and the space required for thedrive motor, electrical apparatus including the timer, a pump where oneis employed, and the various plumbing fixtures and connections is,generally speaking, a given portion of the entire cabinet dimension.Thus, in order to in crease the capacity of the machine it is desirable,rather than encroaching upon the space needed for such equipment byenlarging the cleansing chamber, to provide an efiicient arrangement forstacking the articles to be cleansed and supporting them within thecleansing chamber, while maintaining the necessary optimum cleansingeffect.

The present invention provides such an improved arrangement, includingrack structures which provide the necessary support for dishes, pots andpans, tumblers, and other tableware and food preparing articles to becleansed while attaining considerable versatility in the arrangement ofthe articles within the cleansing chamber according to the particularneeds of the user.

Accordingly, the primary object of this invention is to provide novelrack structures for dishwashing machines which are versatile in use tosupport a wide variety of articles to be cleansed, and which use theavailable space within the cleansing chamber to optimum advantage whilemaintaining the most effective cleansing of the articles.

Another object of the invention is to provide a rack structure for adishwashing machine in which dinner or main serving plates and smallerplates, such as salad plates or saucers, are supported on edge andessentially side by side, but with the bottom surfaces thereof in suchangular relation that their respective beveled edges or lips are spacedand substantially parallel and overlapping, to minimize the impedance ofthe flow of liquid spray therebetween while affording close spacing ofsuch plates and like articles.

An additional object of the invention is to provide an upper rackstructure for a dishwashing machine as set forth above, and particularlyfor use with a novel lower rack as above defined, wherein the larger ormain service plates are arranged centrally of the lower rack, the upperrack being formed with portions of greater depth at the sides than atthe center such as to pass over the plates stacked below, and whereinthe portions of greater and lesser depth in the upper rack can beseparated by hinged divider members which in turn may be placed againstthe bottom of the upper rack to accommodate large arice ticles extendinginto both such deeper and shallower portions thereof.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from thefollowing description, the accompanying drawings and the appendedclaims.

In the drawings- FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of a dishwashingmachine to which the present invention is directed, with the cabinetwall broken away to illustrate the general arrangement of the racks, theliquid spray apparatus, and the door providing access to the cleansingchamber;

FIG. 2 is a view similar to FIG. 1, looking from the front of themachine, and with the major portion of the door broken away to show therack arrangement;

FIG. 3 is a plan view on an enlarged scale of the novel lower rackstructure provided by the invention;

FIG. 4 is an end elevational view of the novel upper rack structure,also on an enlarged scale; and

FIG. 5 is a partial perspective view of the upper rack, showing thehinged mounting and the stop arrangement for the movable divider membersin the upper rack structure.

Referring to the drawings, which illustrate a preferred embodiment ofthe present invention, FIG. 1 shows the general arrangement of a frontloading type of dishwasher incorporating the improved rack constructionof the present invention. The machine includes a cabinet indicated bythe general reference numeral 10, mounted on a base 12, and forming ahousing for a cleansing chamber 15, to which access may be had by a door17 at the front of the machine, hinged to swing forwardly and downwardlyabout the axis 18. The top 19 provides an exterior cover for thehousing. Within the chamber 15 there is a liquid spraying apparatusshown in the form of a rotatable spray head 20. The spray head issupplied with cleansing liquid by a pump (not shown) which is motordriven, and which normally functions to recirculate a quantity ofcleansing liquid supplied to the bottom or sump of chamber 15, in amanner well known in the art. The pump, drive motor, timer controls, andplumbing connections have all been omitted since they are well known inthe art, and form no particular part of the present invention. Detailsof a suitable such apparatus are shown and described in United StatesPatents Nos. 2,681,658 and 2,862,510, both issued to the assignee ofthis application.

As noted previously, the exterior cabinet dimensions of domesticdishwashing machines, to which the present invention is particularlydirected, are in most cases standardized and thus the cabinet 10occupies a predetermined space. As an example, the dimensions of thelatest model of dishwashing machine provided by applicants assignce,provided as a free standing unit with front opening door and includingthe top 19, are: depth (front to back) twenty-five inches; Widthtwenty-four inches; and height thirty-six inches. It is of coursedesirable to provide a maximum effective capacity of cleansing chamber15, but sufficient space must remain below this chamber, in the base 12and adjacent bottom of the cabinet 10, to house the timer, pump, drivemotor, and various plumbing connections in an effective and notover-crowded manner. Otherwise, installation and servicing of themachine becomes difilcult due to lack of work space.

The present invention provides novel rack arrangements which affordoptimum arrangement of the articles to be cleansed within chamber 15,and a major portion of such arrangement is in connection with the lowerrack 25, which is provided with a plurality of supporting rollers 27resting on tracks 28 which are in turn supported from the sides of thechamber 15, spaced properly above the spray head 20. When the door 17 isopened, and it incorpo- Patented Mar. 24, 1964 rates suitable stopmechanism. for maintaining it in the horizontal position, shown indotted lines in FIG. 1, the rack will roll outwardly onto the interior(and then upwardly facing) surface of the door, supporting the rackoutside the chamber in a position where it can easily be loaded andunloaded. This rack is preferably constructed of a plurality of wires orsimilar rod-like elements which are fastened together in the desiredmanner and preferably coated with a plastisol or the like. The rack 25includes a generally rectangular frame piece to which there is secured aplurality of lengthwise bottom pieces 32. Each of these is of generallyU-shape, substantially elongated, and the ends of the lengthwise bottompieces are secured to the framepiece, as by welding, at the front andback.

The rack 25 also includes further crosswise bottom pieces which aresimilarly of elongated generally U- shape, and the opposite ends ofwhich are suitably secured to the sides of frame piece 39. The bottompieces 35 are further contoured or formed such that each one has acentral section 36 which extends transversely at right angles to thebottom pieces 32, preferably resting thereon and secured thereto, andside sections or parts 37 which are formed angularly with respect to thecentral portion 36, and offset therefrom. There are a plurality of suchpieces 35, arranged with the respective central and side portionsparallel, as shown particularly in FIG. 3, and extending upwardlytherefrom, formed either as integral parts or as separate finger likeelements which are secured thereto, are dish supporting fingers. Thus,each of the central portions of the bottom pieces 35 has a finger 40extending upward-1y therefrom, formed as an elongated inverted V orU-shape member which may slant somewhat toward one end of the rack, asshown particularly in FIGS. 2 and 3. The central portions 36 may also beformed with short humped or raised segments 42 which serve to engage thebottom edge of wide dishes or trays arranged transversely of the rack,assisting in holding such articles on edge.

:Each of the side portions 37 of the bottom pieces also is provided withan upwardly extending finger 45, and in a preferred arrangement thereare in fact two such fingers on every other side portion 37, and onefinger on the intermediate side portions. These fingers also may beinclined somewhat toward one end of the rack.

As noted previously, these parts may be formed in any suitable manner,but a preferred construction is formed from heavy gage wires or rods,shaped to the desired configuration and welded wherever they intersect,then coated or covered as a unit with a suitable plastisol or equivalentmaterial. Therefore, the completed rack is an open mesh construction,including a bottom having openings of substantial size through which thecleansing spray may pass essentially unimpeded, and the bottom pieces 32and 35, together with the fingers 40 and 45 cooperate to form dividerpieces defining a number of main pockets in which plates or likearticles can be supported on edge, and a number of side pocketsextending at an angle into the main pockets providing for substantiallyparallel arrangement in overlapping relation of the beveled or upturnedline of plates and the like which are placed on edge in associated mainand side pockets.

With reference particularly to FIG. 3, the areas between adjacentcentral portions 36, together with the fingers 40 of each and thesmaller humps or protrusions 42 on each, form a main pocket crosswise ofthe rack as viewed from above. For reasons which will be discussedfurther in detail, these central pockets form a convenient receiver forlarge dinner plates or the like, three of which are shown in FIG. 3, anddesignated by the general reference numeral '50. In a preferredconstruction, there are twelve main pockets. Similarly, the sideportions 37 of bottom pieces 35, together with the fingers 45, definethe side pockets, and the angular relation of these with respect to mainpockets formed by the same bottom '4 pieces and associate parts is suchthat smaller plates or the like, for example salad plates or saucers 52shown in FIG. 3, will be received therein with the beveled edgesextending generally parallel to the beveled edges of the larger plates50.

It will be noted that the main and associated side pockets are somewhatstaggered by the ofiset relation of the central portions 36, and thusthe lips of the plates in side pockets of the rack will project into thespace between adjacent plates in adjacent main pockets. This relation isclearly shown in FIG. 3. Such an arrangement maintains an effective flowof the cleansing spray through the spaces between the plates and overthe surfaces thereof to assure complete cleansing of the articles, andalso to assure an effective spray flow onto the articles supported onthe upper rack structure, which is designated by the general referencenumeral 66 in FIGS. 1 and 2.

A detail view on a larger scale of the top rack is shown in FIG. 4, andFIG. 5 is a perspective view which illustrates the general mountingarrangement for the upper rack structure, and which shows the supportingmeans for movable parts thereof. The upper rack is formed by a base orframe wire 65, which is of generally rectangular shape in plan view,having opposite side members 66 of elongated inverted and shallowU-shape, joining at the corners with identical front and rear portions67. The shape of these front and rear portions is best described byreference to FIG. 4, wherein it will be noted that the outward segmentsextend upwardly and inwardly at an angle with respect to horizontal, andmerge with inner segments extending upwardly at a steeper angle to joinwith a horizontal central segment. Spaced along the front-to-backdimension of the upper rack there are a plurality of similar bottompieces, having generally the same configuration as the front and rearportions 67 of the frame outline or base 65. These bottom members 70extend upwardly and outwardly, however, beyond the side portions 66, andthey are joined on each side by an upper side wire member 72 which issecured at one end to the central segment of the end portions 67, andwhich is secured also to each of the bottom pieces 70 near the upper endthereof. The remainder of the bottom and sides of the upper rack isformed by a plurality of lengthwise extending bottom wires 73 whichcomplete, with the bottom pieces 70, an open mesh framework forsupporting soiled articles to be cleansed. At the front and back of therack there are also vertically extending end pieces 74 which projectupwardly from the frame piece 65 and are fastened to the upper sidepieces 72, extending across the ends of the upper rack.

Thus, the upper rack structure has deeper portions at the sides thereofextending front to back, and a shallower central portion therebetween. Aplurality of movable divider members 75, preferably four in number, twoon each side, are hinged to one of the bottom wires 73, by looping theends of the divider members thereabout. These divider members provide aremovable barrier or support between the shallower central and thedeeper side sections of the rack. Each of the divider members is ofinverted, elongated, generally U-shaped configuration as shown in FIG.5, and is looped around the appropriate bottom wire 73 as shown to forma hinge mounting. In FIG. 4, which is a view looking upon the front ofthe upper rack, the divider members 75 in the front half of each side ofthe rack are shown folded down upon the bottom wires 73, in whichposition larger articles such as pots, pans, or bowls can be placedthereover, extending across the general dividing area between theshallower and deeper portion of the rack. The rearmost two dividermembers 75 are shown in their erected position, and they are supportedin this position by stops in the form of inwardly bent loops orprotrusions 77 formed in the upper rack side pieces 72. When erected thedividers are convenient supports for smaller articles resting on theshallower portion of the rack.

The upper rack is provided with a -two position mounting arrangement,whereby its spacing above the lower rack can be adjusted. This mountingis in the form of side support brackets 80 fastened to the sides of theupper rack and each including an upper rail 82 and a lower rail 84.Rollers 35 are mounted on the bracket at the rearward edge of each ofthese rails, with their axes generally aligned with the plane of therespective rails.

On the sides of the cleansing chamber there are stationary supportingrails 88, one at each side, and at the front of these rails there aremounted supporting rollers 90. The rack is supported for slidingmovement into and out of the cleansing chamber by engaging either thetop pair or the lower pair of rollers 85 with the rails 88. This willautomatically cause the stationary rollers 90 to engage with thecorresponding upper rails 82 or lower rails 34, as the rack is pushedinto the chamber. The arrangement of course can be varied merely byremoving the rack and mounting it on its other set of rails, thuspermitting the upper rack to accommodate articles of greater depth orheight when mounted in its lower position.

Accordingly, the present invention provides a novel racking or articlesupporting arrangement for domestic dishwashing machines of standardizeddimensions, and in which twelve complete place settings, according toN.E.M.A. (National Electric Manufacturers Association) standards, areaccommodated. The serving plates and salad plates or saucers in thelower rack are maintained spaced apart and in position for completeflowing of the cleansing spray over the surfaces thereof, whilemaintaining an efiective fiow of the spray into the upper rack forcleansing of the articles supported thereon.

While the forms of apparatus herein described constitutes preferredembodiments of the invention, it is to be understood that the inventionis not limited to these precise forms of apparatus and that changes maybe made therein without departing from the scope of the invention whichis defined in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. For use in a dishwashing machine of the type described; an open meshrack for supporting articles having openings of substantial size throughwhich a cleansing spray can pass, said rack having a frame piece andbottom pieces extending therefrom to define a front and a back andopposite sides of said rack, said bottom pieces extending from saidfront to said back, a plurality of divider pieces extending across saidbottom pieces from one side to the other of said rack defining a numberof parallel main pockets from said front entirely to said back in whichplates and like articles are received and also defin ing a number ofside pockets extending at an angle into said main pockets, said sidepockets likewise being arranged entirely from said front to said back,and means on at least some of said divider pieces for supporting on edgearticles placed in said pockets providing for essentially parallelspaced overlapping of the beveled lips of plates and the like placed onedge in associated main and side pockets.

2. For use in a dishwashing machine of the type described; a rack forsupporting articles comprising a generally rectangular frame pieceforming a front and a back and opposite sides, a plurality of bottompieces connected to said frame piece at said front and said back forminga bottom on which articles are supported and defining openings ofsubstantial size through which a cleansing spray can pass onto andbetween the articles, and a plurality of divider pieces arranged acrosssaid rack over said bottom pieces at spaced intervals from said frontentirely to said back defining a number of main pockets in which platesand like articles are received and supported on edge and also defining anumber of side pockets extending at an angle into said main pocketsproviding for substantially parallel arrangement in overlapping relationof the beveled lips of plates and the like placed on edge in associatedmain and side pockets.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,681,844 Walker June 22, 1954 2,835,394 Seymour May 20, 1958 2,862,510Geiger Dec. 2, 1958 2,934,074 Low Apr. 26, 1960 2,956,572 Levit Oct. 18,1960 2,971,652 Getchell Feb. 14, 1961 2,971,668 Peglow Feb. 14, 19613,040,901 Andrew June 26, 1962 FOREIGN PATENTS 750,565 Great BritainJune 20, 1956

2. FOR USE IN A DISHWASHING MACHINE OF THE TYPE DESCRIBED; A RACK FORSUPPORTING ARTICLES COMPRISING A GENERALLY RECTANGULAR FRAME PIECEFORMING A FRONT AND A BACK AND OPPOSITE SIDES, A PLURALITY OF BOTTOMPIECES CONNECTED TO SAID FRAME PIECE AT SAID FRONT AND SAID BACK FORMINGA BOTTOM ON WHICH ARTICLES ARE SUPPORTED AND DEFINING OPENINGS OFSUBSTANTIAL SIZE THROUGH WHICH A CLEANSING SPRAY CAN PASS ONTO ANDBETWEEN THE ARTICLES, AND A PLURALITY OF DIVIDER PIECES ARRANGED ACROSSSAID RACK OVER SAID BOTTOM PIECES AT SPACED INTERVALS FROM SAID FRONTENTIRELY TO SAID BACK DEFINING A NUMBER OF MAIN POCKETS IN WHICH PLATESAND LIKE ARTICLES ARE RECEIVED AND SUPPORTED ON EDGE AND